Apparatus for rearranging randomly oriented elongated articles into endwise orientation



Sept. 5, 1967 J. R. PINKHAM ETAL 3,339,703

APPARATUS FOR REARRANGING RANDOMLY ORIENTED ,ELONGATED ARTICLES INTO ENDWISE ORIENTATION 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 1, 1966 INVENTORS J5SE E. P/NK/MM BY Jdf/N A VRHAWT ATTORNEY Sept. 5, 1967 APPARATUS FOR REARRANGING RANDOMLY ELONGATED ARTICLES INTO ENDWISE ORIENTATION Filed March 1, 1966 2 v e e h s s t wh s M3 R 0 H Ti 5.

INVENTORS JESSE A. P/NKHAM BY JflH/V A? EVER/MR7 ATTOEA/f) J. R. PINKHAM ETAL APPARATUS FOR REARRANGING RANDOMLY ORIENTED Sept. 5, 1967 ELONGATED ARTICLES INTO ENDWISE ORIENTATION Filed March 1, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 MW y HA fiwww 0 5 E T V 0 2 7 7 .VER T a 4 .m w T m r4 kg H LW r N w w 5 w 4 W W T w w m w fluillh- W United States Patent APPARATUS FOR REARRANGING RANDOMLY ORIENTED ELONGATED ARTICLES INTO END- WISE ORIENTATION Jesse R. Pinkham and John R. Everhart, Winston-Salem, N.C., assignors to R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, Winston-Salem, N.C., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Mar. 1, 1966, Ser. No. 538,465 12 Claims. (Cl. 198-33) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An apparatus including a plurality of parallel belts interleaved with a plurality of plates, means for driving the plurality of plates upwardly and downwardly with phase differences between the plates, means for driving the plurality of belts from an input station to an output station, and means located on the output station adapted to move in an are from the vicinity of the output station downwardly between each adjacent pair of plates and upwardly toward the input station, all acting toward the result of taking randomly oriented cigarettes (or similarly shaped articles) at the input station and orienting them into endwise orientation by action of the moving plates by the time they reach the output station, and kicking back from the output station to the input station any cigarettes (or similarly shaped articles) that are not endwise oriented by the time they reach the vicinity of the output station. In a more comprehensive form an input hopper is employed at the input station, having a plurality of fixed plates and a plurality of movable plates each located immediately adjacent respective ones of the plurality of fixed plates, for the purpose of giving a certain degree of orientation or untangling to the cigarettes before they are deposited onto the input station of the plurality of belts.

Background of the invention Modern cigarette manufacturing machines operate at very high speed and efliciency. While they produce very few defective cigarettes per thousand, their high production rate nevertheless can, at times, rapidly build up a quantity of rejected cigarettes. Most of the defects produced under normal running conditions reside in defective glue seams or non-uniform filling of tobacco, and a smaller proportion are due to paper punctures from tramp tobacco stems. In addition to these rejects,many rejects are also produced under various abnormal conditions of cigarette manufacture. For example, when the cigarette manufacturing and assembling machines are started up, there is always an initially high percentage of cigarettes which are defective due to poor glue seams.

The tobacco in such cigarette rejects is of course in no way inferior because of any of the aforesaid cigarette defects. It is desirable to salvage the tobacco by disassembling the rejected cigarettes and directing the tobacco which is secured therefrom back into the tobacco supply to the cigarette assembling machines so that it may be employed once again in the assembly process.

In order to disassemble the defective cigarettes prior to recovery of the tobacco, it is necessary to slit the paper covering longitudinally to free the cylinder of tobacco shreds held therein. A number of machine methods have been proposed for automatically accepting defective cigarettes and slitting them longitudinally to extract the tobacco shreds. However, all such slitting methods have recognized that the most diflicult aspect of such a procedure resides in rearranging the randomly oriented defective cigarettes into an ordered relationship whereby sl1tt1ng "ice might be practiced. Most desirably the cigarettes should be oriented end-wise so that they might be serially passed longitudinally along the edge of a slitting knife, but random to end-wise reorientation is extremely difficult to achieve. Moreover, cigarettes are easily crushed or bent, and they are rather small and very light-weight objects. Consequently the inherently difiicult problem of orienting random elongated objects into end-wise relation is complicated by the special handling needs of cigarettes.

What has been needed is a relatively simple and eflicient apparatus for accepting randomly oriented elongated objects, such as cigarettes, at an input station, and for advancing them toward an output station, all the while reorienting each of them from the random to the end-wise orientations. Such an apparatus would have general applicability in the rearranging of any randomly oriented elongated objects into end-wise orientation by the time they reach the output station, but as regards cigarettes it should additionally be capable of dealing with relatively small and fragile objects without damaging them in any way. When cigarettes are so oriented for the purpose of slitting them to reclaim their tobacco values, the slitting knives are advantageously placed at the output station.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for rearranging randomly oriented elongated articles into end-wise orientation.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for accepting randomly oriented cigarettes at an input station and advancing them toward an output station while rearranging them into end-wise orientation relative to their direction of travel. I

Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for feeding randomly oriented cigarettes toward cigarette longitudinal slitting means while turning the cigarettes so that they arrive at the slitting means in one or more end-wise single files.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for end-wise orienting a plurality of cigarettes without bending or mutilating individual cigarettes.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved means for feeding defective cigarettes to longitudinal slitting means.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be given further elaboration during the detailed.

description of one presently preferred but merely illustrative embodiment of the inventive principles which follows.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an elevation view of an apparatus according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a section view of the apparatu of FIG. 1

taken along plane 22 therein;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial detail view of a portion of the apparatus of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic representation of the turning of an elongated object by the action of an apparatus according to the invention;

" structurally secured in mutually inclined relation to a base frame indicated generally at 12. A pair of conveyor shafts 15, 16 are carried between plates 10, 11 for rotation, and are spaced so that shaft 15 is located adjacent one end 13 of the pair of plates 10, 11 and shaft 16 is located adjacent the opposite end 14. A plurality of narrow parallel conveyor belts 20-39 are carried for endless movement between shafts 15 and 16. Shafts 15, 16 are driven by motive means (not shown) to rotate in the counterclockwise direction as indicated by the arrows in FIG. 1, so that the upper belt span U moves from right to left as viewed in FIG. 1, thereby travelling from an input station located in the general vicinity H near end 13 of the pair of plates 10, 11 to an output station in the general vicinity S near end 14 thereof. A downwardly inclined fixed plate 45 is provided, in the first embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, at the input station H for the reception of defective cigarettes from an elevator or other transport means (not shown). Defective cigarettes which are dumped upon plate 45 tumble down to the various belts 20-39 in the input station vicinity H, and are thereafter moved with the belts toward the output station S.

A plurality of pivoted plates 50-68 are arranged parallel to and interleaved with the plurality of conveyor betls 20-39, so that each of belts 21-38 is immediately bordered on either side by one of these plates, the lateral endmost belts 20 and 39 being bordered on one side by one of these plates and on the other side by one of side plates 10, 11. Each of pivoted plates 50-68 is individually mounted for limited rotation on a fixed pivot shaft 70 which is in turn secured between side plates 10, 11. The plates 50-68 each have the same outline, and plate 50 will be described as representative of the group. Plate 50 includes a bottom edge 50a having a straight outline, and a first end edge 50b also having a straight outline perpendicularly disposed relative to edge 50a. A second end edge 500 is curved with its center of curvature located at pivot shaft 70. The upper edge follows two inclined outlines, indicated at 50d and 50e. Inclined portion 50:! extends from end edge 50b approximately two-thirds of the way toward end edge 500 so that the plate 50 increases gradually in height therealong. Inclined portion 50e extends through the remaining one-third of the way at a rate of inclination sufficiently greater than that of inclined portion 50d so that the increase in the height of plate 50 at portion 50e is greater than the increase in the height of plate 50 at portion 50d. Preferably the inclination of portion 50e is upwardly curved, as shown, rather than linear. Portion 50e terminates at upper end edge 50 which is also the uppermost extreme of end edge 50c.

Each of plates 50-68 is actuated through a controlled range of movement about pivot shaft 70 by individual cams 90-108, one of which will now be described with relation to plate 50. At lower edge 50a of plate 50, in the vicinity of end edge 50c thereof, is carried a cam follower housing 75 wherein is mounted for rotation cam follower wheel 76. A head shaft 80 is arranged beneath the curved end edges 500 etc. of plates 50-68, and is carried for rotation within a pair of laterally spaced upstanding housings 81, 82. Cam 90 has a circular outline and is eccentrically fixed to head shaft 80 for rotation therewith, and is located axially on head shaft 80 so as to lie directly under cam follower wheel 76 for contact therewith.

, As may best be seen in FIG. 2, the plurality of cams 90-108 are fixedly secured to head shaft 80 at various axial position therealong so that every one of plates 50-68 is supported at its respective follower wheel upon the periphery of an individual cam located immediately therebelow. While each of cams 90-108 is identical in outline and diameter, the position of the eccentric axis varies from cam to cam along head shaft 80. In the illustrated embodiment adjacent cams have the orientation of their axis of eccentricity ang-ularly spaced from each other by approximately 36 degrees difference, each such difference being in the same angular direction, so that any ten consecutive cams comprise a set that have their individual axes of eccentricity equispaced angularly about the entire 360, of head shaft 80. The result is that, as may be seen 4 in FIG. 2, the profile of the plurality of cams 90-108 is sinusoidal with respect to the axis of head shaft 80.

Motive means (not shown) is connected at pulley 83 to head shaft 80, for rotation thereof in a single direction and preferably at a constant speed. As head shaft is so rotated the various cams -108 are rotated in unison, and the effect on the sinusoidal profile thereof is to cause traveling sinusoidal waves of cam crests continually from cam 90 toward cam 108 or from cam 108 toward cam 90, depending upon the sense of rotation of head shaft 80. This motion of the crests and valleys of the sinusoidal profile of cams 90-108 is transmitted directly to the plurality of plates 50-68. The plates 50-68 thereby are each individually moved sinusoidally between extreme upper and lower positions. The plurality of plates 50-68 thus may, at their upper-most end edges 50f etc., describe the sinusoidal mutual profile shown in full outline in FIG. 2 at one moment, for example, and at the end of an interval later may describe a translated sinusoidal mutual profile of upper end edges 50 etc lying along the example envelope thereof indicated by the broken outline E in FIG. 2. The smooth continuous infinite succession of translated sinusoidal outlines constitutes a traveling wave of crests, i.e. a traveling wave of upper end edges 50 etc. That is to say, viewed as a group, the upper end edges 50] etc. present the same continuous motion of crests and valleys from one end of the row of plates to the other as occurs at their respective cams 90-108. The upward and downward oscillation of each of plates 50-68 is sufficient to cause portions 50d etc. alternatively to sink below and rise above the level of belts 20-39. However, at least part of curved portions 50e etc. never sink below the level of belts 20-39, for a purpose to be explained presently.

When cigarettes are dumped randomly upon plate 45, they tumble down to input station H, and are initially transported by belts 20-39 toward output station S, in continued random orientation. After a short distance of travel, however, they come under the influence of plates 50-68 in combination with continued influence of belts 20-39. The proportions of the various parts are such that the distance from any sinusoid-a1 crest C (FIG. 2) of one of plates 50-68 to an adjacent sinusoidal trough T is equal to or somewhat less than the length of a unit cigarette. A major portion of the cigarettes that are randomly oriented at input station H are turned into endwise orientation, i.e. are, during continuous motion with belts 20- 39 toward output station S, turned so that they move endwise along individual ones of belts 20-39, by the alternate raising and lowering of opposite ends of the individual cigarettes by the already described sinusoidal motion of plates 50-68.

Thus as any given cigarette, which is skewed relative to the direction of travel of belts 20-39, is moved toward output station S by the combination of belts which it happens to traverse, the plates under different portions of each such cigarette will, at each moment, be at different levels, and, over a period of time will be sinusoidally raised and lowered in the already explained relationship. At the moment in time when the portion of such a cigarette at the lowered plates is in contact with one or more of the belts adjacent these lowered plates, that end of the cigarette will, by virtue of contact with the moving belts, be moved toward output station S more rapidly than the other end of that cigarette, which, since it is at that moment lifted upwardly away from its adjacent belts, is not powered toward output station S but is rather held relatively motionless. This moving of one cigarette end faster than the other causes a turning of the faster end toward output station S, so that the cigarette is, during the period of such differential motion between its ends, turned toward alignment with the direction of motion of belts 20-39. The net result is that, while these cigarettes proceed toward station S, they are subjected to multiple travelling crests and troughs of plates 50-68 thereunder,

. thus turning them step by step toward and finally into alignment with the direction of motion of belts, i.e. into end-wise alignment.

The mechanism by which randomly oriented cigarettes are turned step by step into end-wise alignment by the belts and plates as aforesaid, will best be understood with recourse to diagrammatic FIGS. 4 and 5. In FIGS. 4 and 5 the direction of motion of the belts 20-39 is indicated by the vector arrow from H to S. The direction of motion of the crests in the sinusoidal outline of plates 50-68 is indicated by the vector arrowfrom L to R in FIGS. 4 and 5, the L-R vector being transverse to the H-S vector. In general, the initially randomly oriented cigarettes fall into two major and two minor categories. The two major categories have examples thereof illustrated in full outline in FIGS. 4 and 5 respectively, and together they constitute the large majority of all the initially randomly oriented cigarettes. These two categories comprise all cigarettes are not initially aligned with either vector I-I-S or vector L-R. The orientations of the two. minor categories of orientation are initial alignment with vector H- r S, and initial alignment with vector L-R. Very few cigarettes initially fall into these categories. Those initially aligned with vector H-S of course do not have to be reoriented, and those initially aligned with vector L-R are highly likely to be recycled, as will presently be explained. The invention accordingly concerns the two categories of skewed cigarettes forming the large majority of all cigarettes, and illlustrated respectively in FIGS. 4 and 5.

It will be appreciated that the initially randomly oriented cigarettes are exposed to forces between themselves, of twisting and pushing, in addition to forces received directly from the belts 20-39 and the plates 50- 68. For this reason, the actual progress of individual cigarettes is not as ideal as will now be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, where these inter-cigarette collision and blocking forces are ignored. Since the belt-and plate-generated forces are continuous, and the collision and blocking forces are random, the former will ultimately be the determining factor during the time spent traversing the length of belts 20-39. But it still should be remembered that any individual cigarette may depart appreciably from the ideal progression, which rather describes the overall or mean effect. For example, in practice, cigarettes skewed somewhat from vector L-R may behave as if they were aligned with L-R, and may require recycling. In any event, the recycling means, presently to be described, will recycle any individual cigarettes that, because of blocking or otherwise, have not been correctly oriented in the first pass from input station H to output station S.

An example cigarette C is shown (in full outline) skewed clockwise from vector I-I-S into the upper right and lower left quadrants (as viewed in FIG. 4) and (in full outline) skewed counterclockwise from vector H-S into the upper left and lower right quadrants (as viewed in FIG. 5). Referring first to FIG. 4, every time a crest of plates 50-68 reaches cigarette end C a trough of plates 50-68 will be at end C This means that end C will be lifted from the belts 20-39 by the crest of plates, and the end C, will be lowered into contact with the belts by the trough of plates. This results in a turning of cigarette C counterclockwise (as viewed in FIG. 4) into a position indicated in phantom outline wherein it is aligned with vector H-S. This turning into alignment may occur in one step or in a number of steps, depending upon the initial degree of skewing from vector H-S. In some cases the initial skewing (or the collision and blocking forces already mentioned) will be too great to allow alignment to vector H-S during traverse of the lengths of belts 20- 39, and recycling will be necessary. Of course, between successive occasions when a crest of plates is at C and a trough of plates is at C will be occasions when a trough of plates is at C and a crest of plates at C At these latter times the cigarette C will be turned toward alignment with vector L-R, i.e., away from alignment with vector H-S. However, the summation of turning steps, in both directions, will be a net turning into alignment with vector H-S for all cigarettes except those initially aligned with, or closer to alignment with, vector L-R, and any blocked cigarettes.

Similarly, with reference to FIG. 5, each time a crest of plates 50-68 reaches end C and a trough of plates 50-68 reaches end C the cigarette C is turned toward the position shown in phantom outline wherein the cigarette is aligned with vector H-S. The same processes occur as has alreadybeen described with respect to FIG. 4, and some cigarettes reach alignment with vector H-S and some are recycled. Thus the same movement of plate crests and troughs that turns the cigarette C of FIG. 4 counterclockwise into alignment with vector H-S, turns the cigarette C of FIG. 5 clockwise into alignment with vector H-S. The cigarettes that are turned into alignment with belts 50-68 are fed to longitudinal slitting means, as presently described. Those that are, for any reason, not turned into end-wise alignment with belts 60-68 are recyled as will also presently be described.

When cigarettes introduced in random orientation at input station H are aligned with belts 20-39 by the time of their arrival at output station 5, they are ready for longitudinal slitting. Such further processing does not form a part of the present invention, and will not be described in detail. As may be seen in FIGS. 1 and 3, a knife drum KD includes a plurality of annular grooves g therein, each of which overlies respective ones of the belts 20-39 at their drive shaft 15. The grooves g are semi-cylindrical in cross section, and each of belts 20-39 includes a corresponding and opposed semi-cylindrical groove 20a-39a, so that together each pair of opposed grooves defines a cylindrical orifice of the appropriate size to closely retain individual ones of the cigarettes C. An annular knife blade k bisects each of grooves g, and depends far enough to intrude appreciably into the aforesaid cylindrical orifice defined by the opposed grooves.

When a cigarette C is aligned with one of belts 20-39 by the aforesaid process, it drops into one of grooves 20a-39a therein. 'It is then carried beyond plates 50-68 toward output station S. It is guided therebetween by the belts themselves, and laterally by a plurality of generally triangular stationary plates which are stationary extensions of oscillating plates 50-68, and one of which is shown in phantom outline at in FIG. 1. At station S, each cigarette enters a cylindrical orifice between a belt groove, e.g. 25a, and the overlying one of grooves g. Since the knife drum KD' rotates at a speed substantially higher than that of drum 15, the cigarette is held by friction to and driven through the cylindrical orifice with drum 15, while the faster moving knife k is slitting it longitudinally. Further drive means, such as rollers r, may be employed to extract the tobacco values from the slit paper cylinder, or to pass it on to other means (not shown) for that purpose.

A recycling means is shown in FIG. 1. A shaft is located above the uppermost reach (shown in phantom outline in FIG. 1) of oscillating plates 50-68 and between side plates 10, 11. Shaft 130 is driven in the counterclockwise direction (as viewed in FIG. 1) preferably by the same motive means (not shown) driving shafts 80, 15 and 16. Secured to shaft 130 is a plurality of four-armed paddles, one of which is shown in FIG. 1 at 140, having arms a-140d. There are as many paddles 140 as there are belts 20-39, and each paddle 140 overlies and is aligned with one of belts 20-39. The arms 140a-140d are long and narrow enough to reach down inbetween the oscillating plates 50-68 even when those plates are completely lowered, but are not long enough to reach a cigarette carried in the groove of the underlying one of belts 20-39. The tips of the arms 140a-140d are bent in the direction of rotation of the paddle 140. By these means,

cigarettes C that are not aligned with the belts 20-39, and thus not carried in the corresponding grooves 20a- 39a therein, by the time they reach the portion 50e etc. of the oscillating plates 50-68, will ride up the upwardly curved portions 50e, etc. (which are never lowered below the belts 20-39) and may then be reached by the arms 14011-14001 of the paddles 140. Such unaligned cigarettes are thus kicked back by the paddles 140, over the belts 20-39, to the vicinity of input station H, where they will fall randomly oriented for another orientation pass with belts 20-39 toward output station S. The aligned cigarettes of course pass beneath the paddles 140 in the belt grooves to the output station S as aforesaid. Eventually all the cigarettes are aligned with belts 20-39, in the first or some subsequent pass therealong.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, there is shown an alternative embodiment of the invention. A plurality of fixed plates 145 extend from a major portion 145a adjacent input station H, to a minor portion 145k adjacent to and shaped to conform to the nip between shaft 15 and knife drum KD. As may be seen in phantom outline in FIG. 6, each plate 145 includes a generally U-shaped cradle depression therein, defined by a rear cradling edge 14512, a lower cradling edge 145a, and a front cradling edge 145d. As is best seen in FIG. 7, one of fixed plates 145 occurs for every group of four consecutive ones of belts 50-68. Thus, in effect, each adjacent pair of fixed plates 145 defines a compartment of four belts extending the entire length of the belts from input station H to output station S. The consecutive plates 145 are spaced apart a distance less than the length of cigarettes C. Each plate 145 replaces one of oscillating plates 50-68, so that each adjacent pair of plates 145 includes therebetween four belts but only three oscillating plates (FIG. 7).

A shaft 150 is carried between rectangular upward extensions of side plates 10, 11, and may be driven in oscillatory angular fashion by a crank and rod assembly 160 (FIG. 7) from a motive means (not shown). A plurality of sector plates 170 are secured by sleeves 170a to shaft 150 for oscillation therewith. Each of sector plates 170 is immediately adjacent one of fixed plates 145, as may be seen in FIG. 7. Each sector plate includes slightly less than a quadrant, and the individual sector plates are staggered angularly along shaft 150' so that adjacent ones are not in angular alignment. The degree of angular staggering is such that the corresponding forward and backward edges all fall between the outlines X and Y, and the outlines W and Z, respectively, throughout the range of oscillation of the staggered sector plates 170, which range of oscillation may be, for example, 20 angular degrees. At their extreme forward oscillation, the plates trailing edges do not travel further than outline W, so that they do not pass rear cradling edge 14511 of the U-shaped cradling portion of plates 145. This is import-ant so that cigarettes cannot be caught between the rear edges of the sector plates 170 and the corresponding rear cradling edge 145b.

A downwardly inclined plate 45 is also employed in the embodiment of FIGS. 6 and 7, but displaced upwardly, so as to feed the top of plurality of plates 145. The tangled, randomly oriented cigarettes, drop upon the plates 145 in the U-shaped cradling depression therein. Some cigarettes will be initially aligned with belts 20- 39 sufiiciently to drop between adjacent plates 145 and onto the belts. Those cigarettes that are transverse to the belts, or nearly transverse, will drop only far enough to be engaged by sector plates 170. The motion of the angularly staggered sector plates 170 imparts a stirring motion to such cigarettes, and they will soon be moved until they are aligned sufficiently to drop between adjacent plates 145 and thus onto belts 20-39. By this means, the cigarettes are untangled, and additionally any transverse or nearly transverse ones are turned toward alignment with the underlying belts 20-39. This is not an aligning step as such, since the cigarettes are still not aligned with the belts. The traverse from input station H to output station S affords that, as already described. But the employment of the plates 145, 170' does untangle the cigarettes and does render the generally transverse ones more in alignment with the belts. This initial screening thus renders the procedure more efficient, and lowers the portion of cigarettes that must be recycled by paddles While the invention has been described with reference to two specific embodiments, this has been for purposes of illustration only. Those skilled in the art will appreciate the many variations and changes that may be made in the illustrated embodiments Within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for rearranging randomly oriented elongated articles into endwise orientation comprising:

(a) a driven belt having an upper surface including a plurality of upwardly facing spaced grooves therein, each of said grooves extending in the direction of movement of said belt, one upstream location on said belt constituting an input station, and one downstream location on said belt constituting an output station;

(b) a plurality of elongated members, one each extending intermediate and essentially parallel to each adjacent pair of said grooves, each elongated member being mounted for movement in cycles upwardly from said belt upper surface and downwardly at least to coplanarity with said belt upper surface;

(c) means for reciprocally driving said plurality of elongated members upwardly and downwardly so that adjacent elongated members exhibit a phase difference in their upward and downward motion; and

(d) driven means adapted to move in an are from the vicinity of said output station downwardly between each adjacent pair of elongated members, but spaced upwardly from said belt and belt grooves, and upwardly toward said input station.

2. Apparatus for rearranging randomly oriented elongated articles into endwise orientation comprising:

(a) a driven belt comprising a plurality of separate parallel sections, each said section having an upper face and including an upwardly facing groove therein, each of said sections extending in the direction of movement of said belt, one upstream location on said belt constituting an input station, and one downstream location on said belt constituting an output station;

(b) a plurality of belt plates, each said belt plate being located parallel to and interleaving an adjacent pair of said belt sections, and being pivoted for edge- Wise upward and downward movement, the free end of each said belt plate being nearer said output station and the pivoted end being nearer said input station, the limits of upward and downward motion of each said belt plate being such as to submerge all, except a portion thereof at said free end, below said belt upper face once when that belt plate is at the limit of downward motion, said portion at said free end always extending above said belt upper face;

(c) --means for reciprocally driving said plurality of belt plates upwardly and downwardly so that adjacent belt plates exhibit a phase difference in their upward and downward motion; and

(d) driven means including arms movable between said respective portions at the respective free ends of said plurality of belt plates, one said arm between each pair of adjacent said belt plate free end portions, the lowermost reach of each said arm being spaced upwardly of said belt and belt grooves, the movement of said arms being essentially toward said input station.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein, said belt is part of an endless loop.

4. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein, said means for reciprocally driving said plurality of belt plates comprises a shaft carrying a plurality of cams, each cam being phased ahead of its adjacent cam on a mutually same first side, and phased behind its adjacent cam on a mutually same second side, individual ones of said cams camming individual ones of said plurality of belt plates upwardly and downwardly within said limits.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4 wherein, said cams include an appropriate outline and said phasing being appropriate, so that the crests of said belt plates describes a moving sinusoid.

6. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein, said driven means comprises a plurality of paddles mounted for driven rotation with a shaft, each of said paddles including a plurality of said arms radiating from said shaft, individual ones of said paddles being aligned with respective ones of said belt sections, so that each said arm thereof is successively turned, upon appropriate rotation of said shaft, downwardly between the pair of said belt plates lying to either side of that belt section at said free end portions of that pair of plates, and upwardly in an arc toward said input station, the lowermost reach of said arms being spaced upwardly from said belt upper face.

7. Apparatus according to claim 2, further including an input apparatus at said input station for untangling said elongated articles and turning any ones thereof situated transverse to the direction of movement of said belt away from transverse orientation, before deposit of said elongated articles therefrom onto said belt at said input station, comprising a plurality of spaced parallel fixed plates, each adjacent pair of said fixed plates being spaced apart a distance smaller than the length of'said elongated ar- 1 ticles, each of said fixed plates being essentially parallel to said plurality of belt plates, the upper portions of said fixed plates cooperating to define a mutual trough for the reception of elongated articles, said trough having a bottom of spaced fixed plate edges, and a plurality of movable plates, each located immediately adjacent respective ones of said plurality of fixed plates, and each being mounted and driven for upward and downward movement upwardly into and downwardly below said trough.

8. Apparatus for rearranging randomly oriented elongated articles into endwise orientation comprising:

(a) a driven belt comprising a plurality of separate parallel sections, each said section having an upper face and including an upwardly facing groove therein, each of said sections extending in the direction of movement of said belt, one upstream location on said belt constituting an input station, and one downstream location on said belt constituting an output station;

(b) an input apparatus for, at said input station, un-

tangling said elongated articles and preliminarily adjusting them away from orientation transverse to said belt, comprising,

(i) a plurality of spaced parallel fixed plates, each said plate having a portion located at said input station and a portion extending between and dividing adjacent ones of said belt sections to said output station, each adjacent pair of said fixed plates being spaced apart a distance smaller than the length of said elongated articles but a distance large enough to encompass at least two of said belt sections therebetween, the upper portions of said fixed plates at the portion thereof located adjacent said input station cooperating to define an upwardly open trough for the reception of elongated articles, said trough having a bottom of spaced fixed plate edges, and

(ii) a plurality of movable plates, each located parallel to and immediately adjacent respective ones of said plurality of fixed plates, and each 10 being mounted and driven for upward movement into and downward movement below said trough;

(c) a plurality of belt plates, each said belt plate being located parallel to and interleaving an adjacent pair of said belt sections, except for those pairs of belt sections divided by said fixed plates, each said belt plate being pivoted for edgewise upward and downward movement, the free end of each said belt plate being nearer said output station and the pivoted end being nearer said input station, the limits of upward and downward motion of each said belt plate being such as to submerge all, except a portion thereof at said free end, below said belt upper face once when that belt plate is at the limit of downward motion, said portion at said free end always extending above said belt upper face;

(d) means for reciprocally driving said plurality of belt plates upwardly and downwardly so that adjacent belt plates exhibit a phase difierence in their upward and downward motion; and

(e) driven means including arms movable between said respective portions at the respective free ends of said plurality of belt plates, one said arm between each pair of adjacent said belt plate free end portions, the lowermost reach of each said arm being spaced upwardly of said belt and belt grooves, the movement of said arms being essentially toward said input station.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8 wherein, said movable plates each are pivoted upon a movable plate shaft for oscillatory arcuate motion when said shaft is rotated, adjacent ones of said movable plates being staggered angularly on said movable plate shaft, and the dimensions of said movable plates and the limits of oscillatory rotation of said movable plate shaft being such that the edges of said movable plates which move upwardly into and downwardly below said trough never move out of coextensivity with some part of said fixed plates when moved downwardly below said trough.

10. Apparatus according to claim 9 wherein, each of said movable plates comprises a segmental outline, and each of said plates is pivoted to said movable plate shaft at the apex of said segmental outline.

11. An input apparatus for receiving elongated articles in tangled, randomly oriented condition at an upper portion thereof, and delivering them in untangled condition and at least partially oriented toward a certain direction, comprising:

(a) a plurality of spaced parallel fixed plates, each adjacent pair of said fixed plates being spaced apart a distance smaller than the length of said elongated articles, the upper portions of said fixed plates at the portion thereof located adjacent said input station cooperating to define an upwardly open trough for the reception of elongated articles, said trough having a bottom of spaced fixed plate edges,

(b) a rotatable shaft mounted transversely of said plurality of spaced parallel fixed plates, and

(c) a plurality of movable plates, each located parallel to and immediately adjacent respective ones of said plurality of fixed plates, and each being mounted to said movable shaft for oscillatory arcuate motion when said shaft is rotatably oscillated, for upward movement into and downward movement below said trough, adjacent ones of said movable plates being staggered angularly on said shaft, and the dimensions of said movable plates and the limits of oscillatory rotation of said shaft being such that the edges of said movable plates which move upwardly into and downwardly below said trough never move out of coextensivity with some part of said fixed plates when moved downwardly below said trough.

12. Apparatus according to claim 11 wherein, each of said movable plates comprises a segmental outline,

1 1 12 and each of said plates is pivoted to said movable plate 2,333,576 11/1943 Kerr 19830 shaft at the apex of said segmental outline.

References Cited EVON C. BLUNK, Primary Examiner. UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 EDWARD A. SROKA, Examiner.

553,315 1/1896 Packer 19833 X 

1. APPARATUS FOR REARRANGING RANDOMLY ORIENTED ELONGATED ARTICLES INTO ENDWISE ORIENTATION COMPRISING: (A) A DRIVEN BELT HAVING AN UPPER SURFACE INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF UPWARDLY FACING SPACED GROOVES THEREIN, EACH OF SAID GROOVES EXTENDING IN THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF SAID BELT, ONE UPSTREAM LOCATION ON SAID BELT CONSTITUTION AN INPUT STATION, AND ONE DOWNSTREAM LOCATION ON SAID BELT CONSTITUTING AN OUTPUT STATION; (B) A PLURALITY OF ELONGATED MEMBERS, ONE EACH EXTENDING INTERMEDIATE AND ESSENTIALLY PARALLEL TO EACH ADJACENT PAIR OF SAID GROOVES, EACH ELONGATED MEMBER BEING MOUNTED FOR MOVEMENT IN CYCLES UPWARDLY FROM SAID BELT UPPER SURFACE AND DOWNWARDLY AT LEAST TO COPLANARITY WITH SAID BELT UPPER SURFACE; (C) MEANS FOR RECIPROCALLY DRIVING SAID PLURALITY OF ELONGATED MEMBERS UPWARDLY AND DOWNWARDLY SO THAT ADJACENT ELONGATED MEMBERS EXHIBIT A PHASE DIFFERENCE IN THEIR UPWARD AND DOWNWARD MOTION; AND (D) DRIVEN MEANS ADAPTED TO MOVE IN AN ARC FROM THE VINICITY OF SAID OUTPUT STATION DOWNWARDLY BETWEEN EACH ADJACENT PAIR OF ELONGATED MEMBERS, BUT SPACED UPWARDLY FROM SAID BELT AND BELT GROOVES, AND UPWARDLY TOWARD SAID INPUT STATION. 